Court rules to maintain suspension of Sports Committee President's duties

[Anchor]

In the administrative lawsuit regarding the suspension of Lee Kee-heung, the president of the Korean Sports Committee, the court ruled that the suspension of duties should be maintained.

The reason was the significant concern that it could have a serious impact on public welfare, which analysts say signals a red light for Lee's bid for a third term.

Reporter Kim Ki-beom has the story.

[Report]

Lee Kee-heung, the president of the Korean Sports Committee, received a suspension order from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism last month.

This was due to a government investigation that found he had improperly hired a friend of his child as a staff member at the Jincheon Athletes' Village and was under police investigation for the private use of sponsorship items.

In response, he filed an administrative lawsuit seeking a stay of execution against the suspension.

[Lee Kee-heung/Korean Sports & Olympic Committee President: "I have nothing to do with the hiring corruption. There is no connection with my child, and I do not know that person at all."]

However, the Seoul Administrative Court dismissed Lee Kee-heung's request for a stay of execution today.

There were two main reasons for this.

The court determined that there was no urgent reason for the suspension to be restored, and that restoring it could significantly harm public welfare in terms of transparency, fairness, and ethics.

In response, Lee's side stated, "It is clear that there is a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act," and they filed an appeal to the Seoul High Court against the court's ruling.

This ruling is seen as a major setback for Lee Kee-heung as he approaches his bid for a third term.

Even if Lee Kee-heung is elected, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism could maintain his suspension or refuse to approve him based on the court ruling.

Additionally, as Lee Kee-heung is subject to the laws governing public institutions, he could lose his eligibility to run for office depending on the results of the police investigation, making him very attentive to the investigation's outcome.

Following the failure to extend the term of the IOC member and the loss in the administrative lawsuit regarding the suspension, attention is focused on how these setbacks will affect voter sentiment in the Sports Committee President election.

This is KBS News, Kim Ki-beom.